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Vietnam War/Transcript
Transcript Text reads: The Mysteries of Life with Tim and Moby Tim and Moby are viewing names on a war memorial. Tim reads from a typed letter. TIM: Dear Tim and Moby, The Vietnam War confuses me. What was it all about? From, Ginny. That's a tough one. Let's start with the basics. Vietnam is a country in Southeast Asia. A map shows Vietnam. TIM: In the 1800s, France took over control of Vietnam for its valuable exports: rice and rubber. Side by side images show a rice field and sap dripping into cups placed on rubber trees. TIM: Its neighbors, Laos and Cambodia, were also colonized by the French. Together, the three formed a single colony called French Indochina. A map shows Laos, Cambodia, and Vietnam. MOBY: Beep. TIM: The people of Vietnam didn't exactly appreciate being colonized. A lot of farmers lost their land and grew poor, while the French colonists grew rich. An animation shows a Vietnamese farmer pulling a wealthy colonist in a rickshaw. TIM: During World War II, a Vietnamese man named Ho Chi Minh started organizing his "Viet Minh" armies against their French rulers. An image shows Ho Chi Minh in front of the Vietnamese flag. TIM: Then in 1946, war broke out between the Viet Minh and the French. America's president, Harry S. Truman, decided to help France. MOBY: Beep. TIM: Well, it's complicated. At the time, the U.S. was involved in the Cold War with Communist countries like the Soviet Union and China. Images show the Soviet, Chinese, and American flags. TIM: Ho Chi Minh was a Communist, and that worried Truman. See, American lawmakers believed that if Vietnam became Communist, the rest of Asia would too. It was called the domino theory. A map shows the countries in Asia. China is colored red to represent communism. Then Vietnam turns red, and the rest of Asia follows. TIM: At first, the U.S. gave the French money to help them win the war. But it didn't matter, the Viet Minh won victories in the north of the country. In 1954, France and the Viet Minh signed a treaty dividing the country into Communist North Vietnam and anti-Communist South Vietnam. A map shows North and South Vietnam. North Vietnam is shown in red. TIM: The government in the south wasn't very popular with its people. So the North Vietnamese used a transportation system called the Ho Chi Minh trail to send soldiers and supplies to the Communist uprising in the south. An animation shows soldiers on the Ho Chi Minh trail. TIM: But the U.S. supported the south's anti-Communist government with money and advisers. Then, on August 2nd, 1964, North Vietnamese boats fired torpedoes at an American ship patrolling in the Gulf of Tonkin. A map shows an American Navy ship in the Gulf of Tonkin with a target crosshairs over it. TIM: President Lyndon Johnson got Congress to pass the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution. It said the U.S. could use military force in Vietnam. An image shows President Johnson. TIM: At first, the force was limited to bombings. An animation shows U.S. bomber planes. TIM: But by the end of 1965, there were 184,000 U.S. troops in Vietnam. And over 500,000 by the end of 1968! An image shows rows of soldiers expanding to reveal more and more rows of soldiers. TIM: At first, everyone thought it would be an easy fight for the Americans. Their army was much more advanced and included a great navy and air force. An image shows symbols for the Army, Navy and Air Force. TIM: But the Viet Cong, the Communist soldiers in the south, fought a guerilla war. They used small bands of soldiers to stage ambushes, and built huge tunnel complexes to hide in. An image shows a Viet Cong soldier in a tunnel. TIM: Not only that, but a lot of battles were fought in the dense jungle. The U.S. army was not equipped to fight this kind of war. An animation shows concerned-looking American soldiers in a Vietnam jungle. TIM: Even in the cities of the south where Americans were in control, the Viet Cong would stage suicide bombings and sneak attacks. Back at home, the war became very unpopular. People couldn't understand why Americans had to die for a tiny country halfway around the world. An image shows American flag-draped coffins. TIM: Television, newspapers, and magazines brought home images of innocent Vietnamese civilians killed by American bombs. An image shows a magazine cover that has a picture of an exploded bomb on it. TIM: Protesters marched against the war, sometimes peacefully, sometimes not. An animation shows protestors marching past the White House carrying antiwar signs and symbols. TIM: But a lot of Americans believed in the cause of the war. They thought the protesters were putting U.S. soldiers in danger by weakening support for them. Eventually, President Johnson stopped sending more troops. An image shows President Johnson speaking on television. TIM: He even refused to run for another term as President because of Vietnam! Richard Nixon became President in 1968, promising to end the war with honor. But he didn't manage to make the peace until 1973, after his re-election. President Johnson disappears, then President Nixon appears on the television. TIM: By the time the war was over, at least 1.2 million North and South Vietnamese were dead. And 58,000 American soldiers died in the conflict. Moby lays flowers on the memorial grounds. TIM: Once the American army pulled out, the North Vietnamese invaded the south and unified the country under Communist rule. The map of Vietnam with North Vietnam in red now shows the south turning red, indicating the whole country is under Communist rule. TIM: Today, Vietnam is still mostly Communist in its government, although it has shifted to a market economy, where businesses and consumers decide what they want to sell and buy. And the U.S. and Vietnam are now friendly with each other. But the Vietnam War divided Americans sharply. After all these years, it can still be a touchy subject to bring up with people who lived through it. Ask your parents what they thought of the war, and read up on it to make up your own mind. Peace. Tim makes the peace sign with his fingers.Category:BrainPOP Transcripts Category:BrainPOP Social Studies Transcripts